How to mentally prepare your pet for ground transportation
Two things that a pet owner should focus on when preparing their pet for transportation are:
#2 Mental Preparation
These two aspects are different from one another. However, there are still some times when the two overlap each other.
For the purpose of this article, we are going to briefly discuss the Mental Preparation that your pet may need to go through, in order to make their transport a more enjoyable experience for them.
IMPORTANT NOTE: If you do not understand how to take any of the following actions, are questioning your knowledge to perform the actions, or just don’t know how to do them correctly, please seek the help of a reputable dog trainer or behaviorist to help you.
DO NOT ATTEMPT THESE METHODS IF YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND HOW TO PERFORM THEM IN A WAY THAT KEEPS YOU, YOUR PET, AND OTHERS SAFE!
First of all, every pet owner should know that what may work for one pet, may not work for the other. Remember, each one is an individual and they will each requirement is unique. So, when judging what they may or may not need to be mentally prepared for transport, please treat them as unique individuals.
Real quick, it is important to re-note that the physical and mental exercise can often overlap each other and help one-another out. That doesn’t mean that doing a physical exercise will take care of the mental exercise as well. It’s just important to know that your pet may need more of one type of exercise over the other. You must be the judge. To check out what type of physical exercises you could do and how they may aid in mentally preparing your pet, please click here.
Before we dive into the beginnings of mental preparation for your pet, for their transport, we’d like to mention that doing your pet’s physical exercises, before the following mental preparation exercises, is a good idea and will most likely benefit your pet.
Important Tip: CONSISTENCY IS KEY & CAN DETERMINE OUTCOMES
For the following examples, we are going to use a dog as an example.
Preparation Tip #1:
Get your dog comfortable with other people.
To your dog, your pet transporter is going to be a strange person. It is a good idea to consistently take them out, as much as possible, to just be around other people. Your dog doesn’t need to be touched or talked to by others. Just walking them around others will suffice.
Note: If your dog is reactive around strange people, it may benefit you to have your dog wear a muzzle. It will make you feel more comfortable and your dog will pick up on your lower stress levels, allowing them to relax a little more.
Preparation Tip #2:
Go through the motions of loading your dog in a crate, inside your vehicle.
1. If your dog is comfortable entering a vehicle, but not comfortable in a crate that is inside the vehicle, skip to step 2. Put a collar and leash on your dog. Use treats to lure them into your vehicle. If treats do not work, hold the leash and physically go into your vehicle before your dog and encourage them with light/medium leash pressure (Vocal encouragement can encourage or discourage a dog from entering the vehicle. Be sure to use the correct method for your dog.). When your dog is exiting the vehicle, discourage them from exiting in a fast, excited, and/or erratic motion. Repeat until your dog is comfortable entering and exiting the vehicle.
2. If your dog is comfortable being inside a crate that is inside a vehicle, skip to step 3. Now that your dog is used to and comfortable with entering a vehicle, put your dog’s crate inside your vehicle and repeat the same steps, from step 1. When your dog is exiting the vehicle, discourage them from exiting in a fast, excited, and/or erratic motion. Repeat the steps until your dog is comfortable entering and exiting the crate.
3. Now that your dog is comfortable being inside a crate that is inside a vehicle, take them out on short rides (just around the block). Repeat this until your dog is traveling comfortably and happily. Do this a few times a day, for as many days as needed.
4. Increase the driving time to about 20-30 minutes, until your dog is traveling comfortably and happily. Do this a once or twice a day, for as many days as needed.
5. You have just laid a solid foundation! Now, grab a friend and have them repeat steps 1-4, with you nearby and sitting as a passenger, inside the same car that your dog has being going in and out of.
6. Using that same friend, have them repeat steps 1-4, without you around, and inside the vehicle that your dog has gone in and out of (make sure to provide them with your dog’s leash and collar).
7. Have that same friend repeat steps 1-4, without you around and with their own vehicle that is different from the one previously used.
8. Have a new friend repeat steps 1-4, without you around and with their own vehicle.
9. Repeat step 8 until your dog is traveling comfortably and happy with everybody!
Preparation Tip #3:
Exercise your dog, physically and mentally, before your pet’s departure. For physical and mental exercise tips/examples, CLICK HERE.
We hope you enjoyed these mental preparation tips for your pet and their long-distance ground pet transportation. Remember to seek help if you don’t understand or know how to perform them.
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